In first world countries we view the benefits and detriments of video games with a jaded eye. But today, in Somali, video games are keeping teenage boys off the streets. When the Muslim militants took over in 2006, teenage boys and schools became a prime recruiting ground for militant Islamic teachings and the military government. Six years later, teenage boys are now playing video games and behaving like first world teenage boys. They now have a reasonable chance to grow up and avoid becoming combatants in an ugly and brutal civil war. So next time we have the urge to tell our teenagers to stop playing video games and grow up, remember that somehow in Africa teenage boys stand silently in lines to pay 10 cents for 15 minutes of game time for a chance to better their futures.
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